Modern wireless data communications provide bandwidth that allows user of wireless devices to use a number of rich mobile computing applications. For example, users of wireless devices such as smart phones can make telephone calls, receive emails, and even receive full motion audio/video broadcasts on their mobile devices. Every time a great new service is offered, users of wireless devices consume it and ask for more. As a result, the airwaves are filled with, and often packed with, data going to and from wireless computing devices.
The electromagnetic spectrum that wireless devices use for communication is treated as a precious resource. Governments control where in the spectrum particular wireless technologies can operate, and also control who can use particular portions of the spectrum (e.g., through high-cost spectrum auctions). Various mechanisms have been used to maximize the amount of data a network of wireless devices and corresponding base stations can put into a particular amount of spectrum. For example, multiplexing techniques may be used to stack multiple data streams in a single range of spectrum. Compression may also be used to transmit more data in a smaller data space.
Such techniques are at a premium when a large number of users want to use a particular communication system. Also, if a base station is to support a wide area (and thus reduce the number of base stations needed in a network), the base station will need to communicate with a large number of users at once. Such support for a large number of users who are all consuming large amounts of bandwidth can define the capability of a wireless communications system to compete.
Wireless networking schemes may also be established so as to share fairly the bandwidth that is available across a system, e.g., to devices communicating in the area of a single base station, or within a cell. For example, devices that do not need much bandwidth (e.g., those sending and receiving simple emails) can be allocated a low amount of bandwidth, while those that need extensive amount of bandwidth (e.g., those conducting a video teleconference) can be allocated a much larger amount. The allocations can then change when the needs of, or other factors affecting, the devices change.